Where you create a work that is a translation, indicate the link back to the original work in your metadata, because it is a great aid to discoverability. When you do so, the system automatically populates metadata in the new work, and includes in ONIX the fact that the works are connected.

Throughout this article, the translated work is referred to as the Derived work, and the work or works from which it is derived as the Original works.

Within the Derived work, find the Original work

  • Go to Work > Metadata.
  • Go to Derivations.
  • In the Original works field, type the start of a title to get a list of the original works.
  • Choose the original works. For a translation, there is usually only one work from which the translation is derived, but if the translation is a mix of two original works (e.g. a translated anthology of three novellas previously published as separate works) it is possible to assign all of them as original works.
  • Click Save

If you missed any works out, repeat to add them. The order doesn’t matter at the moment: you define that next.

2. Set the derivation type

Assign a derivation type of Translated to the derived works in the grid that will appear. The grid will pre-fill with Compilation: click on that to edit it to Translated.

3. Incorporate the original contributors

Press Click to include in this work to incorporate the original work’s or works’ contributors into the translated work.

Scroll down to see the complete contributor list. You may see a repeated name, but that is probably a person who has multiple contributor roles (e.g. editor and author). This is correct.

4. Set the authorship statement

If the complete list of contributors is going to be too long for online display, set the Online authorship description to something suitable. Click Save.

5. Add language and translator

Add the translator to the Contributor section.

Add the language and its role to the Contents > Languages section.